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One Extended Edition DVD to rule them all!

* This is a review of the Extended Edition of "The Return of the King", and not necessarily a review of the film itself...

By the release of this final instalment of Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy was released, the series was recognised as a true fantasy epic. As with the previous two films, I ignored the cinematic cut release of the film on DVD and waited for the extended edition to be released a few months later.

Once again, the additional and extended scenes offered by this cut really embellish the story in key areas, giving greater insight into the relationships between central characters, giving extra screen time to a few people and places which were somewhat glossed over at first (despite the lengthy running time), and generally expand the experience of the film.

Complete with these scenes, "The Return of the King" provides a monumental conclusion to to a captivating trilogy. It is full of excitement, great story-telling, fierce creatures and compelling characters. The story is told with incredible visual and audio effects, which combine to produce some of the most impressive battle scenes in film history.

The music of Howard Shore is one of the stars of the trilogy, and plays an absolutely stellar role in this final part. The score moves from fun and homely, to moving and powerful, to tense and chilling, matching the action perfectly with each scene. Distinctive themes developing throughout the soundtrack, and really help to conjure up the magic of Middle Earth.

Once again this is a 4 disc set, with the first 2 discs comprising the extended cut of the film, and then 2 discs crammed full of special features. The documentaries are detailed, and fascinating, charting the planning, hard work and creativity which has gone into scripting, shooting and finishing the project. Among the most interesting features are those which show the evolution of a scene from the original storyboard and animatics through to the final product. The presentation of the box-set is really impressive once again, with the overall package resembling a blue, worn leather-bound book, and the inside of the case featuring fantastic sprawling illustrations, a detailed map of the fellowship's journey, and some great concept art.

One of the key features of this, and the previous two 'Extended Edition' which I have neglected to mention is the 'Official Fan Club Credits', which roll after the main credits have ended. This gives a name check to every member of the official Lord of the Rings fan club, which comes to 1,000s of names, and a good few minutes of additional time at the end of the film. This is a nice very 'tip of the cap' to fan club members, and shows once again that the film makers had the popularity of the source material and the experiences of the fans at the heart of their project.

The extended edition of "The Return of the King" completes a brilliant collectors' set of DVDs. It is a rich and compelling story, well told, and engrossing to watch, accompanied by a real and fascinating insight into how it all came to be.

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Excellent third installment of the Lord of the Rings trilogy

The Return pf the King is the third and final part of J R R Tolkien's trilogy about a fantasy world where good is striving to triumph over evil. As director Peter Jackson sets the wheels in motion for the prequel to this tale, The Hobbit, it's no doubt encouraging people to return to this trilogy, of which this third film is considered the best in many ways.

The tale features hobbit Frodo Baggins and his assortments of companions and guardians as he endeavours to take the one Ring, aka source of all evil, and throw it into the fires of Mordor, thus destroying it forever. Over the course of the past two installments, the group have been split up for various reasons, and Return of the King follows the various groupings as they face odds likely to cause them death in order to ensure Frodo can reach his end goal and destroy the Ring.

What I liked about this film was just how entertaining it is, and how every aspect of it comes together, in front of and behind the camera, in order for this to work. Not only was the casting spot on from day one, but the acting has been superb ever since the first scene of the first film, The Fellowship of the Ring. the special effects have been amazing, no expense has been spared with the attention to detail, and Peter Jackson's vision and love for the books shines through at every opportune moment.

Stunning locations around New Zealand bring Tolkien's Middle-earth to life throughout the trilogy, and it's in Return of the King that the long and sweeping scenes across the mountains really sum it all up. The acting from all the cast has been stellar throughout, and the last film does take on a little bit of the feel good mentality that we have come to expect from any epic or action film that has a big battle in it.

And this has more than one big battle. In fact, it almost seems as if these main characters spend the majority of the last film doing just that, whether it's defending a city, attacking an enemy's, escaping pursuit, being the pursuer, fighting you inner demons and fears, or fighting the person you love the most due to reasons beyond your control: it's all about the fight, and about the mind trying to win over all else. There are many analogies that may be used within the film, but perhaps the best also resides in arguably the best character: that of Gollum, the human who has spent so long underground that he has become more a creature than the man he once was. The Ring has driven him mad, and what he now calls his 'Precious' has created a schizophrenic vicious character whose willingness to help merely hides what is obvious to us: he wants the Ring for himself. As his two personalities have conversations with each other, we see the fight that goes on for most characters: the way they keep questioning themselves and their quest, testing their willpower to overcome the odds and put their lives on the line, time and again, for a cause that they believe in. It's powerful stuff, from start to finish.

Andy Serkis gets to don the mantle of Gollum, even though the visual character is a computer generated marvel of special effects. Serkis' ability to mimic voices and create near-magic with his vocality is put to good use here, and I was surprised, from the first moment we meet him, before the events of this film, just how perfectly chosen he is for the role when compared with how I imagined the character from the book. The same also goes for the rest, particularly Viggo Mortenson as Aragorn, perhaps the leader of the group and the mentor and heir to the rightful throne of Middle-Earth. Viggo's gruff and determined look throughout works as much here as the desperate warrior as it does in his other films, especially his gruff and desperate father in post Apocalyptic America in the adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's The Road, and his role as a determined and rather gruff) yet polished and clean Russian assassin in Eastern promises.

Similarly, the cool nature of Orlando Bloom's chiselled looks make him the perfect Legolas the Elf, while Gimli the dwarf is given a perfect display by the theatrical booming voice of John Rhys-Davies, despite the rather comical factoid that he was the tallest of the main cast and had to play the dwarf. Incidentally, he also voices the Chief Ent, and does so rather well! Legolas and Gimli have enjoyed two previous films of banter as elves and dwarves traditionally don't get on, although the friendship between these two comes to the fore as some powerful music plays alongside every scene.

Add to this crew an excellent cast with Frodo being played by Elijah Wood, and then followed by a string of players such as Sean Astin, Sir Ian McKellen, Bernard Hill, Dominic Monaghan and Billy Boyd (and this is just touching the surface) and you have yourself an exceptional cast.

The music, which I have just mentioned, is phenomenal. My dad actually watches the films moreso for the musicality than for the film itself, as he is so impressed by it. It's his area of expertise, so I should listen, and it does make sense when he points out just how strong a part of a film can be made by having the right musical elements at exactly the right time. Spot on.

When the film finished, it felt complete as a trilogy. I was disappointed as it was all over, and it's something that I had been excited about since I first heard they were making the films. The beauty of it is that the films are made so well that watching them over and over again is easy, you can pick up extra things that you may not have noticed before, and the extended edition allows the true fans of the book to get a bit back as well. The theatrical release had shortened versions, whereas the extended release has nearly an hour extra. This is a film only review, as I have not fully explored the DVD's features, but it's certainly something I have in mind to do.

Return of the King sits high in Empire's Top 500 films of all time list, and no surprise. A lot of time, care, love, money and precision was put into it, and Jackson's vision at bringing it all together is second to none. Fantastic stuff that I can't recommend enough. I'd strongly suggest watching the first two films in the trilogy before this one, otherwise a lot of it won't make sense, but you really can't go wrong with any of the three, and this one caps it off beautifully. Recommended.

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A stunning conclusion to a remarkable trilogy

And so, the epic journey Lord of the Rings trilogy finally reaches its conclusion, after almost 12 hours (in the extended editions) of screen time. Thankfully, the farewell to Gandalf, Frodo and the others is a fitting one and, unlike many trilogies, Return of the King ends with a bang, not a whimper.

After the spectacular ending to the Two Towers and the stunning battle of Helm's Deep, many people thought that Peter Jackson and his team would struggle to top the first two films. Yet, using a combination of great storytelling and superb special effects, they manage it.

The Return of the King follows the continuing quest to destroy the One Ring before the Dark Lord Sauron can find it. The two hobbits, Frodo and Sam, continue their journey into Mordor to cast the Ring into the Crack of Doom (no sniggering at the back), whilst the remaining members of the Fellowship look to hold off the might of the armies of Mordor.

Where Return works so well is in the balancing of the big with the small. The film's main set-piece - the attack on Gondor - somehow manages to top the the earlier, impressive battle of Helm's Deep in intensity, length and viciousness. Exciting and visually spectacular, it manages to convey the true horrors of war without ever becoming over-serious and preachy. The battle is hugely imaginative and breathtaking. You genuinely feel like you are there in the thick of the action and, when the arrows start raining down, it's all you can do to stop yourself from ducking.

Yet, for all the spectacular action (and by now, we have come to expect that from the Rings trilogy), Return is careful to balance this with more character-driven sequences which prevent the film from relying purely on action and effects. This ensure that the film has just as much substance as it does style. As such, even in the midst of battle, we witness Aragorn's self-doubt that he is a worthy king of Gondor, whilst even Gandalf appears to be losing faith. Given that we have seen these characters change and grow over the course of three films, such moments have an emotional impact on the audience.

Contrasting sharply with the impressive cityscapes of Gondor is the journey of Frodo and Sam (along with their tricksy guide, Gollum) into Mordor. The shadowy, murky land speaking of the increasing dangers facing the trio with every step of their journey. Again, it's here that Jackson's attention to character and personality pays off, . Frodo's increasingly futile struggle with the Ring and Gollum's schizophrenic battle between the good and evil sides of his nature make these sections deeply personal and moving. In fact, it's actually in Mordor that Return works better than any other film of its kind. It delivers spectacular visuals and stunning special effects by the bucket-load, yet it never loses sight of the personal, human elements which make for a compelling story.

Sadly, Jackson still can't resist the temptation to return to the dull sub-plot which slowed down The Two Towers (and which does not feature in the book):the love story for Aragorn and Arwen. Once again, this could easily have been cut, although thankfully, it does not receive quite as much screen time as the earlier film. Purists will also complain that the final chapters of the book (involving the taking back of the Shire by Merry and Pippin) have been lost, although this is understandable, since their inclusion simply have made an already very long film unbearably long.

For the most part, Jackson juggles the complex, different elements of the film very well. Occasionally, he causes slight confusion through his constant switching between different plot elements, but this reflects the slightly fragmented narrative of the book, which is following multiple characters and it's not too difficult to follow - particularly if you already know the broad story arc.

It seems almost pointless to say this, because by the time of the third film, we had come to expect it, but Return of the King is visually spectacular. Middle Earth is stunningly and lovingly recreated and looks absolutely real. Closely following the descriptions in Tolkien's original books, this is about as faithful a recreation of that world as you are ever likely to see. Of course, certain compromises have had to be made along the way, but Jackson and his Weta special effects team deservedly (finally) swept the board at the Oscars.

The cast, too, is as strong as ever. Now fully cemented in the public consciousness as the embodiment of these characters, all the main cast continue with strong performances, although it's Sean Astin's Sam and Elijah Wood's Frodo who get the chance to shine here. The third instalment gives them far greater opportunity to exercise their acting muscles and Elijah Wood, in particular, finally loses his perma-frown and starts to emote far more convincingly. As their quest draws to and end, the relationship between Sam and Frodo becomes increasingly touching and emotionally charged.

The Two Towers showed us that using a fully CGI character motion captured from a very good actor can work and Andy Serkis continues and expands his superb work here as Gollum. Despicable though the character might be, you cannot help but feel sorry for him as he battles against his own nature. Combined with Jackson's excellent use of clever camera work to portray the good/evil sides of Gollum/Smeagol, you are always left wanting more.

It's true that some of the newcomers can get a little lost amongst the increasingly frantic action, but special mention should go to John Noble as the grieving, broken Denethor, Steward of Gondor and father of Boromir. Whilst the film never quite develops his character as well as the book, or makes him quite as sympathetic, he still stands out as the best newcomer to the trilogy.

There are complaints that the final film is too long and that that the multiple "endings" (there are at least four) which seek to close the story arcs of each of the characters become tiresome. This is certainly true to some extent, but it is also necessary. Missing these out would have left the fate of the key characters hanging in the balance and would have made for a very unsatisfying conclusion. Moreover, if you are looking for something to blame, look to the original book, which, in fact, has even more endings than the film. Yes, by the end of four hours, you are started to get a bit twitchy; but since you've come this far, can't you spend another ten minutes in the company of the Fellowship?

With the much-delayed Hobbit film still a good few years away, this is the last slice of Middle Earth fans will get for a while. It's a fitting farewell to a fine trilogy and a fine adaptation of possibly three of the most influential fantasy books of all time.

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a good ending

Again, I've chosen to review the extended edition of this film rather than the original because I believe this is by far the better version and for just a couple of extra pounds than the original well worth the money.

This film is the final instalment of Peter Jackson's trilogy adapted from the book's the lord of the rings. And blimey has he done it again. He's really pushed the boat out with this film's CGI and made it more about the battle scenes than ever before, there is no need to concentrate to much on the story as it is simply pushing the final puzzle peices into place, but more on the way the characters have changed from the first film and how powerful they have become in the audience's mind.

Saying this however I do wish Peter Jackson had stuck a little more rigidly to the books and made a better storyline I realise that now he has won the countless awards he didn't have to but it would have been nice to see more in the film from the original book. I believe therefore this is why I enjoyed the extended version so much all the extra scenes this time focused entirley on new story and fantastic developments that gave you a much more personable feel for the characters.

I would reccomend this version of the film to the people that have read J.R.R Tolkein's book and wanted to see a bit more of this come through in the film because this film has really delivered that.

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A great ending to a great trilogy

This is the third instalment of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, based on the books by J. R. R. Tolkien and directed by Peter Jackson. The film is a much darker film but also contains a lot of happiness and those of you who are prone to crying during films beware!

This film has lots of separate things happening in completely different places, which sometimes makes it hard to follow if you don't give it your full attention. I say this because something big might be happening but then it might just cut to something else totally separate and then ten minutes later come back to the original event where it left off.

I do feel that maybe some of this film could have been put in the previous film (the Two Towers) so there was a bit more action in that film and this film wasn't packed full of things, but then again that's what makes this film the best of them all.

The film still contains Gollum but at the start of the film we see Smeagol in the form of Andy Serkis who voices Gollum. Throughout the film Gollum turns more and more against Frodo and the ring. He speaks a lot in this film and I really appreciated Serkis a lot because he not only does the voice over but he does all the movements of Gollum by wearing a specially adapted motion capture suit and also he voices the witch king, which is an amazingly eerie voice!

There are even more characters in this film and some returning characters who have small parts. This sometimes makes it confusing and especially so as they all have strange names, so trying to name all of them afterwards is quite tricky. A few of the characters also look quite similar so you easily get confused as to who is who, but this doesn't affect the viewing experience too much.

This film also sees a huge amount of Orcs in it. You have to pay huge credit to the make-up artists who spend hours each day creating these beasts, it really is truly amazing and sometimes these people go unnoticed for the work that they do.

In the film there is a battle at a place called Minas Tirith. This has a huge city built in a sort of castle formation. It is obviously created using a model of some sort and by using computer generated imagery (CGI) and during most of the filming it looks really authentic. There were parts where you could notice it wasn't so real but I think this might have been because I was actively looking for faults in it.

Even though the film is generally darker there is still room for some comedy again, mainly coming from Gimli and Legolas as they compete with each other. I find it especially funny when Gimli and Legolas are seeing who can kill the most people.

Frodo is weary and miserable most of the film in this episode so I don't feel there is must acting done as it seems to be the same in most scenes. But on saying that he really does look miserable and weary, a credit to the great acting from Elijah Wood.

It is the characters of Merry and Pippin (Dominic Monaghan and Billy Boyd) who really come into their own in this film. They have far more to do and it shows many different sides to them. They take on the role well and are more than convincing; their loyalty to Frodo seems so genuine.Without giving the ending away to those of you who haven't yet seen this film (if you haven't then you need to see it soon) the ending is a tearful one. You feel like you have been on this long journey with them yourself after sitting through three films of around three hours each and it has come to an end now, you are excused for shedding a tear for these young hobbits and their quest.

Overall the effects in this film go even further than the last two films, but at times it can go a little too far and it is noticeable.

For me this was by far the best Lord of the Rings out of the trilogy and this was shown by all the awards it has won. It was nominated for eleven academy awards and won them all! It has also won other awards, but me listing them all here would be pointless as this is my review and that information can be found elsewhere online. I would recommend this film strongly to you, just make sure you have seen the previous two episodes in the trilogy otherwise you won't have a clue what is going on.

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Brilliant film

I have not reviwed any of the other lord of the ring films, but i thought i should review the return of the king as it is so very good. I will not go into details about the story line as i am sure nearly everyone must know the basics (hobbits trying to get an evil ring to a volcano to destroy it...encounter many difficulties...done!)This is surprisingly my favourite film in the trilogy. I always assumed this was going to be quite rubbish in comparison, but i was happily surprised. I am a huge fan of the book but have never managed to finished the return of the king so the film was quite refreshing to watch as was not sure what was going to happen.The casting is amazing and i feel each character is represented amazingly, from Aragon to Gandalf, the acting is simply superb.As with all Peter Jackson films, this was a grand set. The scenery is breathtakingly beautiful (pretty sure most of it is set in New Zeland). The battle scenes are truely epic, the best i have ever seen in a film (apart from 300). I do love this film however i felt it should have ended before it did. The end seems to drag out (which i know is necessary to explain the stroy line) but it seemed to end on a bit of a boring and standard scene. The extended edition gives you lots of extras and is well worth buying (or at least renting)

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fantastic movie, truly epic

This is part three of the trilogy of the lord of the rings. In my opinion, it is by far the best in every way without exception. the story follows the continuing travels of frodo, the ring-bearer, and his companion, samwise. It also follows the continuing struggle of the race of men against the rising power of the dark lord and his army. This film sees some of the best battle scenes i have ever seen with the big battle for Gondor and the final battle which acts as a diversion for frodo to cross across the plains of mordor unharmed. The battle scenes see some of the largest cavalry scenes in any movie and they truly are very impressive. Once again, Howard Shore's score for this film is simply fantastic and builds the atmosphere of fear and darkness which surrounds this, the darkest of all three films. I thought the ending to this film was moving and emotional, as well as being very fitting to the trilogy as a whole. There were many points which you thought could have been the end however Peter Jackson managed to add some really nice touches bringing back some characters like Bilbo Baggins to show how they ended up which gives, in my opinion a really nice completion tot he trilogy.

Great film and bonus features and extended footage can only be good.

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The quest comes to an end

This is the final part of the trilogy and so don't even think about watching it unless you have seen the two earlier films, otherwise, you'll be that annoying person who I always seem to end up watching films with and who insists on asking me questions all the way through!

Talking of questions, it's really a tough one to decide whether this film or the first in the series is the best. Personally, I feel that this film hits the greater heights but then goes on for far too long. Even though huge chunks have been left out from the book, the film still feels like it is half an hour too long and that it could happily end a bit sooner.

The film wraps up all the loose ends and the quest started in the first film finally comes to an end whilst the new King of Middle Earth shows his worth in two huge and stupendous battles. Whilst the real finale throws up the old chestnut of 'Why didn't they just fly to Mount Doom on the back of the eagles and finish the job in an afternoon?', this is great stuff and all our favourite characters have a big and starring part.

The Witch King is great and very scary and you feel like cheering when Gandalf gives the despicable Steward, Denethor, a good clip round the ear with his staff. Frodo starts to descend into madness as the ring begins to master him and the giant spider, Shelob, is splendidly malignant.

The music, the special effects and the film making are all masterful and mean that, in reality, Peter Jackson contends with Aragorn to be the true King of Middle Earth. This film is a fitting and very worthy end to the whole magnificient endeavour.

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A fitting climax

An odd way to start a review talking about an end isn't it? Well, it makes me a little bit sad as you realise that once the credits roll there's no more. The epic is over!

This installment of Peter Jackson's saga is by far the darkest episode. We get to witness Frodo's decline into abject desperation as the quest to destroy the ring gets more impossible with every step. Gollum has most certainly got the better of Smeagol and in this film he displays just how far he'll go to get what he wants. There's also a not so friendly spider lurking around in the background...

Pretty much every character in this has a major trial to overcome. Aragorn must take the reigns of a king in waiting, Gimli must confront his fear of the dead, Gandalf has to aid a demented steward to see reason and Theoden must prove his worth (with a little bit of help from Miranda Otto)

You'd think the big old battle at the end of The Two Towers was impressive enough wouldn't you? Forget that. This time we're talking all out war as Sauron sends his minions to wipe out his enemy once and for all. The numbers involved are quite staggering and the effects once again top notch.

Whilst this is all kicking off Frodo has to keep inching forward to Mount Doom with ever faithful sam doing his bit to help him get there.

Now, my one gripe about this film is the end. In the original book there's a rather sad ending involving the Hobbits when they return home. Saruman took residence in their village in this book and it's a trial for the hobbits to overcome him. Unfortunately Peter Jackson's version made this scenario impossible.

What we find instead is a gradual coming down after the major issues of the war. Whilst it's all well crafted I'd have liked something a bit more meaty to end with. It almost ends on a whimper.

Apart from that one minor gripe though this is most certainly a winner. It scooped a whole host of Oscars and after watching this you can see why. I've seen this for one or two pounds at a bootfair quite a few times. Do yourself a favour if you see it, stick your hand in your pocket and keep an afternoon/evening free (forgot to say, the extended version goes on forever!) and enjoy.

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The journey of the ring bearer is completed in epic style

This is of course the final installment of the Lord of the Rings trilogy - The Return of the King. No real additions to the cast but the old favourites are back again.Our heroes face their darkest hour with seemingly unassailable odds mounted up against them. Sam and Frodo are penetrating deep into the land of the enemy with Frodo suffering under the effects of the ring, Aragon and company are face difficult choices and Gandalf, Merry and Pippin come face to face with the leader of the Ring Wraiths. It's a fitting end to the trilogy and there are not too many loose ends afterwards. For those that have read the books the most glaring omission is the Raising of the Shire, which although hinted at in the 1st film with Sam's vision in the pool is not here.A wonderful film with a poignant ending. There are more gigantic battle set pieces and once again the CGI is top notch.

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brilliant

The third and final chapter of the masterful Lord Of The Rings and definately the best one in my opinion. Here you have Frodo, Sam and Aragorn return in the final battle against the evil Lord Sauron. Sauron forces are growing and the chance of total annihilation of middle earth is upon every good soul in the land. Frodo and Sam battle on further towards Mordor with each step taking them closer to death. Aragorn must find a way to help the white city survive an attack from the armies of Mordor.

The battle sequences in this film are no less than brilliant with everything seemlessly integrated into the movie. You have giant elephants and crazy demons. The special effects are staggering throughout so much so that you do not question any part of the film. Everything seems like it is real.

The film features a fantastic cast of characters and actors making this film an absolute joy to watch.

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A brilliant finish to these all so poular films.

A superb finish to one of the best trilogys of all time, and one that so many people went to see at the cinema, and so many people bought on dvd. Absolutely loved this film - until the last 20 minutes.

This films leads on in the style of the two towers, as the storys are split and neither knows what the other is doing, hoewver we do.

Sam,Frodo and the backstabbing gollum are close to their destination of Mount Doom, however now face the toughest part of their trip, will they make it? Will Gollum stick good to his word?

Now the rest are still fighting their way to stop the evil of Mordor spreading across Middle Earth, stopping Saruman and Sauron's evil plans.

This film has many battles, and the extended dvd, adds new footage in at brilliant parts, such as when Sam and Frodo are forced to act different in Mordor and Aaragon first uses his new help to fight off the forces which stand in his way.

This film is the final lord of the rings movie, and is brilliant, however i felt the last 20 minutes was rather poor and could of been cut down or out.

This dvd comes nicely presented with its two appendices discs like its previous equivalents and i als received a very nice White City(i think) monument.

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It must be seen on the biggest screen you can!

Well, this is it, the finale in Peter Jackson's epic adaptation of the Lord of the Rings, one of the most popular books in history.

In this film we see Frodo, Sam and Gollum get to Mount Doom with the Ring and we see Minas Tirith being assaulted by the armines of Mordor, ultimately deciding the fate of Middle Earth. Aragorn and co join in the battle to save Minus Tirith, as well as taking up his rightful place as the king of Gondor.

Once again the film is absolutely brilliant. The actors all do yet another superb job at bringing their characters to life and really keep the emotions running high. The set pieces, costumes and special effects are all, once again, stunning, in fact, out of the three, Peter Jackson has certainly saved the best, and most jaw dropping, until last. Unfortunately, the best, and most immersive, way of watching this film is on as big a screen as you possibly can - which most of us can't do. The battle scenes are truely epic.

This special edition dvd is definately worth the money. You get four disks, two for the film and two full of nothing but behind the scenes footage and many documentaries of how we did this and how we did that.

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A Fitting end ..

So this film came out in December, and I went to see it with excitement and in a way sadness. Excitement because I wanted to see how the film ended (although I had already read the book) and of course just to sit back and be blown away. Sad because it was the last of the trilogy and after this film that means no more surprises. That is unless Peter Jackson does decide to make The HObbit. Anyways, back to ROTK.

Once again everyone is here for the exception of Christpher Lee as the menacing Saruman The White. Gollum is far better in ths film as is evil and scheming side comes out. The special effects are far more superior in this film but of course effects are nothing without good acting...which this trilogy is blessed with. The star of this film is Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn who must lead the army of men against the Orcs of Mordor. At the same time he must decide whether to take to the thrown of Gondor. Sean Astin also delivers in this film as Samwise Gamgee turns into a Holywood hero at the end, killing three orcs at a time and carryin "mr. Frodo" up the steeping slopes of mount doom. The spider shelob is just as gruesome as she is scary but I find it quite funny how such a huge spider can be taken out within minutes by an overweight hobbit. If i have to fault this film then it is down to it being over long. Although its hard to see exactly how Peter Jackson could make it shorter...for the last 20 minutes or so my bum was painfully numb. Another fault is that the special effects did seem to overwhelm the film a bit. Oh yeh, and what the hell was Peter Jackson thinking when he decided to make Legolad take out a bloody great big elephant like that. Not only was that stupid but it ruined the excitement and fury of the battle of the Pelennor fields. No Peter, just no! But those things put aside this film is outstanding.

The Lord Of The Rings trilogy is not to be sniggered at as some people do. It is as much about friendship, loyalty, greed and hope as it is about kicking orc-ass. If you want to waste approximately three and a half hours...sit down and watch this when it comes out on DVD. Or wait a couple more months for the extended DVD....where it is said to be five hours long. These films have landed them a spot in the list of the greatest films of all history. And we owe it all to J.R.R Tolkein and Peter Jackson...as well as the cast and crew.

(original review written by me on imdb)

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Peter Jacksons final foray into Tolkein

How long was this awful film? Almost 4 hours in duration? It copies the 2nd film by recapping what went before (pretty pointless as you really wouldn't be going to see it if you hadn't already seen parts 1 and 2).The last 30 minutes were really taking the mickey in no uncertain terms. This is basically the final battles, Frodo taking the ring into Mordor and revisting sections of "The Hobbit" (which is yet to be made) with Gollum & The Spider.

The ring gets destroyed and Saurons power source has finally been removed, that's it, the movie is then over. We really don't need to see Sam & Frodo getting saved by eagles or them return to Hobbiton or see Bilbo & Frodo leave with the elves (does that even happen in the book?).

The end of the film drags on far too long. Also the build-up to the 2 main big battles drags on far too long as well. If you are going to adapt a very long novel, then try to learn from Frank Herberts mistakes in creating the movie Dune which originally was 8 hours long when Dino DeLaurentis shot it. Cut as much as possible or just don't bother!

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Product Details

The greatest trilogy in film history, presented in the most ambitious sets in DVD history, comes to a grand conclusion with the extended edition of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. Not only is the third and final installment of Peter Jackson's adaptation of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien the longest of the three, but a full 50 minutes of new material pushes the running time to a whopping 4 hours and 10 minutes. The new scenes are welcome, and the bonus features maintain the high bar set by the first two films, The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers. What's New?